Chapter 33: Five coins per bucket

After Mo Yue walked for about a stick of incense, the shadow of the village appeared before them.

Yang Dashu smiled and exclaimed, “There is indeed a village.”

As they got closer, they noticed a stone tablet standing at the entrance, with the words ‘Luo Village’ engraved on it.

“Haha, it seems that the shopkeeper didn’t lie to you. It’s really Luo Village,” Yang Lizheng said with a grin.

He called on several representatives to go into the village to speak with the locals, and Su Yin decided to accompany them.

As soon as they approached the village, the children there spotted them. Without waiting for any interaction, they turned and ran away, shouting, “People from other villages are coming! People from other villages are coming!”

Shortly after, a few young and middle-aged men emerged, wielding rakes and hoes, rushing out of their homes toward them.

Su Yin and the others immediately halted, standing still and not daring to advance.

The villagers stared at them intently, weapons pointed in their direction. Both sides sized each other up, with Su Yin particularly observing the men at the front, recognizing their faces from her dream.

The dream I had yesterday was a prophetic dream.

In this tense atmosphere, Yang Lizheng tried to ease the situation. “Don’t be nervous; we mean no harm. I am Li Zheng from Xinghua Village in Dongtu County, and my surname is Yang. Is the Li Zheng from your village here?”

Moments later, an old man with white hair was helped out from behind the crowd.

He focused his gaze on Yang Lizheng and spoke, “I am Li Zheng from Luo Village, and my surname is Luo. No matter what your purpose is in coming to our village, we do not welcome you. Please leave as soon as possible.”

Butcher Yang, who was known for his quick temper, urged, “Luo Lizheng, we just came here to replenish some water. Please be accommodating.”

“Go, go! Our village has its own water supply, and it’s not enough for us, so we can’t give any to you,” one of the men from Luo Village refused outright.

“You need to leave quickly!”

“Yes, leave quickly. We don’t welcome you in Luocun,” one of the villagers said.

“Huh, who knows if you’re here for water or to steal?” someone else muttered sarcastically.

Luo Cunli was about to speak again. “Yang Lizheng, you’ve seen that our village doesn’t welcome outsiders.”

Su Yin heard that sentence and understood why they were so xenophobic and hostile.

Yang Lizheng displayed a sad expression. “Luo Lizheng, I have no choice but to come here to bother you. Along the way, the river has dried up, and we haven’t found a water source for a long time.

Many people in the village have no water to use, and it’s so hot today. If we can’t find any, we’ll all die of thirst. If your village could donate a few buckets of water, we would be grateful.”

“We don’t need your gratitude. We are short of water and can’t give it away,” Luo Lizheng replied.

Yang Lizheng and the others were disappointed. It was clear that they wouldn’t give any water, and there was no point in arguing further.

Just as they were about to leave, Su Yin intervened. “I wonder if anyone is willing to sell me a bucket of water? I’m willing to pay two cents.”

Her words sparked interest among the villagers, but no one dared to act on it. Their eyes were glued to Li Zheng.

Luo Li sighed. “That’s all. Saving one life is better than building a seven-level pagoda. Our village doesn’t have much water, so we can only sell ten buckets of water, but each bucket costs five cents.”

The villagers’ faces, which had brightened momentarily, froze with disappointment.

Five cents per bucket of water was a price few could afford.

Yang Lizheng nodded and expressed his gratitude. “Thank you, Luo Lizheng, for your help.”

He turned to his eldest son, Yang Fu. “Tell everyone in the village who is willing to buy water to come and buy it quickly.”

The news spread quickly, and many people cursed.

“Five cents for a bucket of water? Why don’t they just grab it?”

“This is too expensive. If I only had two pennies, I could still bite the bullet and buy a bucket,” one villager complained.

“I originally wanted to buy it, but the price is too steep. I still have some water at home that can last for a while,” another added.

“If we find a water source tomorrow, wouldn’t that five cents be wasted?”

In the end, only a few households decided to buy water, those who were truly desperate.

Su Yin also purchased a bucket of water.

Mother Su was upset. “You girl, we still have some water left. It can last for a few days! Why are you wasting money?”

The eldest aunt, second aunt, and younger aunt all gathered around.

“Yinyin, are you out of water? We still have some here.”

“Yes, we still have some here,” they echoed.

One of her aunts scooped up half a bucket of water to offer to her.

Su Yin quickly refused. “I was just thinking about buying a bucket to be prepared.”

The three aunts didn’t believe her at first, but with Su’s mother’s confirmation, they criticized Su Yin for spending five cents on water.

Su Yin could only hang her head and humbly accept the concern from her aunts.

Since the dream last night had been prophetic, she needed to find a way to keep them safe from the horse bandits.

The only way to avoid the horse bandits was to enter the forest before they arrived. However, walking on the official road made it difficult for everyone to divert into the forest.

Su Yin approached Yang Lizheng and said, “Third Grandfather, I just remembered something.

The shopkeeper who told me stories mentioned that there is a double-peaked mountain near Luo Village, and there are mountain springs under the two peaks. The water there is perfect for making tea.”

Butcher Yang was overjoyed. “Girl Su, is what you said true?”

“If he didn’t lie to me, it’s certainly true,” Su Yin replied.

“She definitely didn’t lie to you. Luo Cun was the best proof before. I just don’t know if the mountain spring water is drying up,” Butcher Yang mused.

“Probably not,” Su Yin replied.

“If that’s the case, why are the people in Luo Village still short of water and refusing to give it to us?” Yang Lizheng asked, confused.

Before Su Yin could speak, Yang Dashu chimed in with a smile. “It’s far away, so it’s troublesome to get water from there.”

“Uncle Dashu is right. I heard from the shopkeeper that the mountain spring water is hidden and few people know about it. He also said that only the medicine man found out about it.

The shopkeeper also mentioned that after finding the mountain spring water, there is a path over there that can reach Yongqing County,” Su Yin explained.

As they were talking, a group of people appeared behind them, families with their belongings.

When Su Yin saw them, her heart tightened.

Seeing them means that the horse bandits are about to arrive.

However, in her dream, the horse bandits hadn’t reached them yet.

There is still an hour left until the end of time. If we encounter them early, then we’ll encounter the horse bandits early.

Su Yin felt a surge of anxiety, knowing that a group of murderous gods was approaching.

“Third Grandfather, let’s walk through the mountains. Although it’s difficult to walk into the mountains, the woods provide shade, and we can get water. It’s a win-win situation,” she suggested.

“I think that will work,” Butcher Yang agreed, raising his hand.

“I don’t have any objection either,” Yang Lizheng added.

Yang Lizheng thought for a while, made a decision, and prepared to change their route. The others, knowing that there were springs in the mountains where they could get water and that it could lead to Yongqing County, agreed.

Yang Lizheng glanced at the crowd behind them and didn’t rush to leave. “Let’s wait for them to leave before we go.”